Short Interest in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Declines By 12.5%

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 22,292,549 shares, a decrease of 12.5% from the February 12th total of 25,489,737 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,003,843 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.5 days. Approximately 5.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 5.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,003,843 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.5 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mariner LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 56,151 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,341,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 35.5% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,512 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,751 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 10,471 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,392 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $25.89.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $24.38 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $26.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.40. The firm has a market cap of $12.70 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Franklin Resources has a 1-year low of $16.25 and a 1-year high of $28.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The closed-end fund reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 6.97%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. Research analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 122.22%.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.